More playable races! (Gnoll, Half-Orc, Lizardfolk)

So, you're starting to think elves are tall thin humans, dwarves are short wide humans, and halflings are small cute humans and you want to play something a little bit more monstrous. I don't know why - maybe you want to be a bit different. Maybe you think the conflicts inherent in playing a half-Orc paladin will be fascinating. Maybe you want to represent a culture that seems strange and alien to the "civilised" races. Maybe you just think Gnolls are awesome.

Well, here you go.

Gnoll
Bard: Your songs are meant for a bloodthirsty chorus. Your allies can always Aid your Arcane Art rolls if they're within shouting distance.
Druid: The spirit of the predator is ever-hungry. When you crack the bones and feast on the marrow of your fallen foes, the GM will tell you a secret they knew.
Fighter: You have vicious teeth and claws, and know how to use them. They are a weapon with Hand range and the Messy tag (if you choose bare hands as your signature weapon, add the Messy tag for free).
Ranger: You are adept at learning your prey's weaknesses. When you Hunt and Track a specific creature you intend to slay, take +2 damage ongoing against it when you finally corner it.


Half-Orc
Bard: Your music invigorates you as much as your allies. When you use Arcane Art to grant a bonus to damage, you also take +1d4 forward to damage.
Cleric: The monstrous, blood-soaked gods of the Orcs call out to you when your faith wavers. When you roll a miss on Cast a Spell, you may treat the result instead as a 7-9. If you do this, take -1 Forward to Last Breath. You may clear this next time you successfully petition your god for Divine Guidance.
Fighter: You're inured to pain, and can brace yourself to withstand horrible wounds. Whenever you choose to take damage, you count as having one more point of armour than normal.
Paladin: Your god wishes to make your divine authority obvious to all who would doubt that a half-Orc could serve as a Paladin. When you are on a quest, you recieve a Mark of Divine Authority in addition to whatever other boons you would gain (whether you want it or not).
Ranger: Your animal companion has been through as many tough scrapes and dicey situations as you have. It gets +1 armour.


Lizardfolk
Cleric: Your faith is ancient. Your gods were old when the first Elves crawled from the mud. Add Petition: Recover or restore an element of the ancient Lizardfolk Empire.
Fighter: Your scales have hardened, and are now as tough as any armour. You count as having 2 armour even buck-naked.
Paladin: Your unblinking gaze is transfixing, your sibilant voice a proclamation of doom. When you roll 10+ on I Am The Law, you may take +1 Ongoing instead of +1 Forward. This lasts so long as you focus your attention single-mindedly on that one NPC.
Wizard: You know secrets more ancient than the world. When you Spout Lore about magic, you may convert a 7-9 result into a 10+ by declaring that this knowledge is lost to all but the Lizardfolk.


I'd appreciate comments on whether these seem balanced, as well as whether they seem cool.

(I do have a copy of Number Appearing, and I'm aware that Justin has already done a fantastic job of making some of these traditionally "monster" species playable; but I wanted to take my own shot at it.)

Hi,

  This is obviously not a playtest but my reactions and thoughts.  In general, I think moves that are 99% always done aren't very interesting.  It's the choice and decision that makes things interesting...

  I feel that the Gnoll's Bard's talent is too good especially compared to the Human/Elf talents.  I think Gnoll bards would primarily end up using that move for every battle.

  I like the Gnoll Druid's talent.  I wonder if it'd be better to have it be a roll though so it can have some interesting side-effects/complications.  Otherwise, I imagine a Gnoll druid would chew the marrow of every fallen foe hoping hoping for a clue or hint of treasure.

  Just out of curiosity, why the half-orc and not just Orc? 
I think the Half Orc's Bardic talent may also be a touch overbalanced?  But then again, Bards only hit for 1d6?  Am I correct that the +1d4 just applies for his next attack and not the whole encounter?

  The Lizardsfolk Fighter's armour; does it stack w/ regular armor? 
The Lizardfolk wizard has too much leeway w/ the spout lore talent.  I'd set a limit on it as once per session otherwise you may as well treat every 7-9 as 10+.

  The talents I found most interesting were the Gnoll Druid, Half Orc Cleric, and Lizardfolk Paladin. 

Thanks for posting this.


 

  I feel that the Gnoll's Bard's talent is too good especially compared to the Human/Elf talents.  I think Gnoll bards would primarily end up using that move for every battle.

Remember, "Aid Another" is one of the basic moves. It's not an always-active bonus, it requires the Bard's allies to perform the Aid Another move - and, as a move, they have a chance to roll a 7-9 or a miss. The Gnoll's advantage just means that it's really easy to justify Aid Another to the Bard's Arcane Art: "Ok, she's singing the Song of the Red Huntsman? Cool, I join in."

I like the Gnoll Druid's talent.  I wonder if it'd be better to have it be a roll though so it can have some interesting side-effects/complications.  Otherwise, I imagine a Gnoll druid would chew the marrow of every fallen foe hoping hoping for a clue or hint of treasure.

Yep, definitely going to re-envision this as a Move rather than an automatic thing. Thanks!

Just out of curiosity, why the half-orc and not just Orc?

In this case, it's because there's someone in the campaign I'm going to start soon who wants to play a half-Orc. You could use the moves for Orcs just as well.

I think the Half Orc's Bardic talent may also be a touch overbalanced?  But then again, Bards only hit for 1d6?  Am I correct that the +1d4 just applies for his next attack and not the whole encounter?

"+X Forward" always means a bonus to the next roll. If it was for the whole encounter it'd be +X Ongoing. And yes, the Bard does d6 damage. Part of the point of this advantage is to encourage the half-Orc bard to break face a bit more often.

The Lizardsfolk Fighter's armour; does it stack w/ regular armor? 

Nope. It basically means your armour is never less than 2; which would be incredible for a Wizard or a Rogue, but shouldn't be overpowered for a Fighter who's expected to wear heavy armour most of the time anyway. It's a defence against getting caught with your pants down.

The Lizardfolk wizard has too much leeway w/ the spout lore talent.  I'd set a limit on it as once per session otherwise you may as well treat every 7-9 as 10+.

Good point. It's not without limitations - declaring that a particular bit of knowledge is known only to the Lizardfolk does have some pretty serious repercussions in the fiction, especially if most of the Lizardfolk aren't exactly good guys; plus it can only be used for Spout Lore about magic. It might still be too good. I like the theme of this one, but the implementation is tricky.

Looking through the classes, all of their racial moves are "always on" and beneficial. No reason you couldn't make a racial move with soft hit and miss conditions, but that'll be a racial move worse than any others. Important thing to consider, I think.